OPEN THREAD conversation-starter: What should Starbucks do now to satisfy all three of these groups: investors, customers and employees

Sure, it's easy to sit back and criticize a CEO for his/her actions, but try coming up with solutions that satisfy everyone. Put yourself in the CEO chair and give us three (or more) things that should be done now to put Starbucks on track -- moves that will increase revenue while keeping customers and workers happy. Give us your ideas, or discuss anything self Starbucks-related in the open thread.

Comments

[STARBUCKS GOSSIP WEBMASTER]

Note: The name of the person submitting the comment appears BELOW the comment. I know that's not as clear with the redesign.

[Gust]

Maybe just serve coffee? The stores I visit limit availability of (fresh) drip coffee to busy hours. During quiet hours you either get lukewarm coffee or the advise to choose for Americano because "it is nearly the same" (quoting the baristas). Probably they want to save on coffee beans. I'm not sure if this is company policy or just local practise. But there's something wrong when a coffee shop is reluctant to serve plain coffee.

[e]

oh gust! i'm sorry you are being told that. it is not company policy, but seeing as your store continues to do that, request a french press.

[darthsid]

gust, e:
As a matter of fact, IT IS company policy to have brewed coffee available at all times.

Check your resource manuals, should be under Beverage resource manual, 'brewed coffee should be available at all times'.

It's a shame that your store tries to save on the coffee, because brewed coffee really isn't expensive to mark out.

[LoveTheWNBA]

@Gust

The store I currently work at is told to brew a second coffee to pikes only until noon. I don't like this practice very much myself either but it's what I'm told to do, so I do it. I can kind of understand the reasoning behind it though. Why brew different coffee's every 30 minutes like we're supposed to only to dump them out? But a coffee shop should have more than one kind of coffee available at ALL times.

[masm]

@gust,

This is the biggest complaint we receive about the new Pike Place coffee standards. Starbucks designed this coffee for people who didn't like our other coffees, but then decided to say eff you to the loyal customers who DID like our coffee by making anything other than PPR unavailable after noon. Starbucks then back-tracked after receiving numerous complaints by allowing stores with high brewed coffee sales to continue to brew the weekly morning pick coffee until 5pm. But the only way a store would qualify for this is if the baristas were properly ringing the morning pick coffee, which many weren't.

In my experience, most of the people who enjoy the variety of Starbucks' coffees think that Pike Place sucks. I agree with them.

This is one area that Starbucks needs to revisit and reevaluate their priorities. Don't piss on people who actually like coffee just because you want to get the old ladies who think our coffee is "burnt" or "too strong" in the door.

LoveTheWNBA if you dont like the practice... why dont you do something about it? The great thing about Starbucks is that a brand new barista is able to make changes if they have the determination to do so. Yes it is policy that the daily pick is only brewed certain times, but if its what your customers want.. brew it all day, we do

[Gust]

Thanks for the reactions. The situation I was referring to is where they deliberately do not brew drip coffee at all. During busy hours however they do serve the usual two coffees (Estima and the weekly pick; no Pike Place over here), although even then it seems that the baristas cannot care less when they sometimes substitute one coffee for the other without any comment. At a whopping 2,25 euro (3,5 USD after taxes) for a tall drip this is probably gross.

[kilroy]

Several years ago I worked on a contract for some SBUX execs.After a casual discussion about why the company was so successful I was asked if I could put my ideas on a program(a disk) so this particular guy could use it.Sure.There's a lot that has changed since then;the status thing ended when shops opened in Safeway and Target.The relaxed nature of the place is an issue as the music drives me out of the stores and since its piped outside even the area.Thankful the coffee products are still excellent.The Vivano thing is a failure and its advertising figures are an insult to customers.The one thing that most differentiates SBUX are the workers in the stores, Years ago that was the case and its the same today.SBUX needs to concentrate on customer interaction and turn back the clock 7 or 8 years to reinvent itself.

[gmreat]

kilroy-
i agree with some of what you said. i disagree with selling our product and name to "licensed stores" in supermarkets, etc. almost daily i hear complaints about the quality of product coming out of these "fake starbucks" because the company doesn't have control over what happens to these stores, the product they sell and the policies they practice reflect poorly on the company. i'm sorry that the music drives you out of the store, but many of our customers enjoy it and we spend a lot of time finding out the name of a song, an artist, or an album for customers when they ask what is playing.
i'm really glad that you appreciate the coffee products and the partners working in the stores. i love the product and the people i work with, and it is the best job i have ever had because i can get excited about serving people their beverages.
that said, i disagree that vivanno is a failure. things may be different in other areas, but in my store and the city i'm in, vivanno has seen a great start. all of our partners are really excited about them and our customers are really appreciative of a healthier option. plus, i think three weeks is a bit early to call any product or practice a failure.
we are focusing on customer interaction, and listening to what the feedback from the public is. i agree that it will take awhile to get back to the company we once were, but i'm confident that the company is doing all it can to get us back on the right track

[zoom]

I think the above poster has it correct.(Kilroy) Since I left the company after 10 yrs and have returned to varying stores in my market, I realized how not so great the customer interactions are. As a store manager, I stressed the importance of the customer interaction above all else, including my drive thru stores. It's what made us significantly different from other retail establishments, and it's where the new focus should be. All these other "gimmicks" that they going on is pointless if the person in front of you can't smile, say hello, thank you, and good bye. It has to be all about the guests and current store managers really need to evaluate those that can't do the above and show them the door.

[Miranda]

Three things . . .

Customer interaction is important, but it should not be intrusive. This has been discussed to death so I won't go into it again except to say . . . recognize that your customers are there to make a purchase and perhaps get some advice, but not to have a full-fledged conversation.

Emphasize the coffee/tea products and back off a bit on the rest. I can count on one hand how many times I've purchased something to eat at Starbucks, and I'm there at least twice a week. Sampling is a great idea if it can be done in such a way that it doesn't require an employee to spend their entire shift sampling (which I imagine is not exactly a fun task for the employee).

Show the staff and lower management more respect and give them back that feeling of involvement and "what I do matters". Once employees feel powerless, like they have no control over their daily duties and like the company doesn't value them, they stop caring. That's the case in any business, not just Starbucks.

[Gust]

gmreat-
Thanks for your contribution. The picture is now becoming clearer for me. The coffeeless stores I made reference to indeed are licensed stores. Apparently these licensees are cutting the edges.

Just curious but what have ASMs and SMs who have left the company gone on to do? Just curious as to some of the career moves?

[Cut Out The Heart]

1. Engage the partners in the problem solving process. Provide them the information about their individual units economics and establish appropriate goals for the unit, not the company.
2. Quit the shotgun approach to running the business. Vivanno may be the right product or it could be the next Hear music. Do what you do best, coffee. Enhance what you do well rather then always looking to "tranform" the business world. Interstingly enough, there have been cafe's in Austria for centuries and they just keep doing what they do and do it well.
3. Scale back liscense (though that is almost free money. Easy to be lured by the low overhead cash flow). The union employee at Safeway is only doing a job and not looking to enhance the brand. The difference between the the liscense stores in the US and franchised concepts is they are part of another business, that has its own culture. The Starbucks in a grocery store or book store is just another department designed for one thing only, traffic driver to sell other products. Starbucks is an afterthought in those locations.
4. Here is my bitter pill comment...terminate all executives who don't get the culture that built the brand. The SSC is chock full of people that are only looking out for their own personal gain.

Okay, my last comment was cynical but sure makes me feel better.

[Stan]

Change the order of your priorities.

Instead of putting the investors and the short term, 3 months Thompson First Call reports as the top priority put the customers and your most valuable asset the employees first.

Admit that PPR was a big mistake and remove it.

Stop opening new international stores for a period of time and use those designated capital funds to put a Clover machine in all stores so the customer has a choice of more coffee options.

Go back to your market niche and stop trying to compete with other companies with so many varieties of offerings like smoothies, breakfast sandwiches, etc..

Strive to keep thing simple and recognize some new items are labor intensive and excess paper work is non productive.

Try and regain your past perceived humanity toward your most important asset the employees, especially at the lower end of the pay scale.

Stop blaming all problems on the economy and prior management and take ownership of the current issues.

Peet's and others can do well in the current economy and so can Starbuck if they just go back to the basics.

Stop with the corporate speak and thinking and use some common sense to get back to your niche.

Doing what you know best will keep the customers happy and generate sales and profit which will keep the investors happy.

[Ex Bux Pgh]

They will never stop with the corporate speak. The key skill they look for when promoting from within isn't proficiency in store operations, it is how well you can follow their specific formula when answering interview questions. It isn't about passion, commitment and engaging the customers anymore. It is about drinking the koolaid on a daily basis and conforming to their ubercorporate requirements. This is now a company that rewards backstabbing and incompetence, and sets unattainable expectations to those it arbitrarily deems unworthy. Until the company wakes up and kicks the bullshitters to the curb, they can look forward to more of the downhill slide. And I will visit other shops and laugh to myself as these people dig their own graves.

[dmanagerla(former)]

I have left starbucks to pursue my dream job as a full time mom. the pay sucks, but the benefits PAckage cannot be beat! as i type right now i am fighting my 3 year old for dominANCE over the keyboard! :)

totally worth leaving starbucks, and I must admit, starbucks prepared me well for motherhood... the whiney customers, bitchy RD's and DM's in need of POTTY TRAIning, well, I guess I should be thanking them right now!
Thanks Marisol, thanks Christian!

d.

[Zorro]

Quick question for all of you who work at SBUX, a place I love and frequently frequent (or go to?)...Today I went in with my registered card. I wanted an Iced Tall Venti extra cm caramel machiato. However, as I understand the registered card benefits, I don't pay for syrup. Therefore, I told the barista that I wanted an Iced Venti Latte, add vanilla and caramel sauce. The barista refused to ring it up that way--and I had to get the shift supervisor, who finally rang it up the way I wanted.

Yes, I know...it's a difference of forty cents...and I'm probably cheap...but I don't understand why they looked at me as if I was trying to pull one over on them.

I was asking for something the registered card entitled me to...I didn't make up these Byzantine registered card rules. Is there any specific company policy on what modiferes/drinks one can and cannot order with the registered card?

[dmanagerla(former)]

Ex Bux Pgh,
well said...
if you can speak "starbucks", which don't forget, is an ever changing language, then you got the job!

I love the company, but you said it so well...
d.

[kirk glover]

Starbucks grew by making good full flavor coffee; now most mornings I have to go to more than one store to find a cup of bold coffee. You made your mark with full flavor coffee, now your pushing Pike; Pike is so smooth it has no odor and taste. I heard you brought out Pike to compete with McDonalds, I don't buy that coffee either. When I can't go into Starbucks most mornings and get a good cup of coffee---YOU ARE IN TROUBLE.

[GermaninSD]

I can only speak as customer, not as an insider: What I like to see improve is the experience as a guest in the store. I second the poster who stated the music being too loud. It drives me crazy. You are in a coffee house for two reasons. While you are consuming the starbucks product you are either chatting with friends or you are reading. And music at Starbucks is usually too intrusive to do either. Maybe that's just me and I think it also depends on the stores' design on how the audio sounds.
Another pet peeve of mine is the stores' design. I wish Starbucks found a way to get back the cosey coffee house feel. I notice re-designs in certain stores right now. They line up nice chairs and oversized tables that look much nicer than the metal and stone furniture they had before. And yet the arrangement make you feel like you're in a furniture storage. I appreciate the idea, but I don't think it's executed right in some stores. I also think they should bring back carpet into stores, not just tiled floors with rugs. I think the stores lost most of their appeals when they got tiled. Sounds silly, but I think it made a HUGE difference.

So those would be my quick fixes: Turn down the music, order a professional interior designer to each and every store and if you have a dime left bring back the carpet.

And btw: I think the service is great in almost every store. I very much appreciate it!

[CB]

Can anyone in So Cal report how the sorbettos are selling? Are they doing well? What are the customer comments on them?

Zorro:

The Sbux card doesn't change the price of "signature drinks" and a Caramel Macchiato is considered a signature drink. If you were to order a latte and wanted to add a flavored syrup or soy to it you wouldn't be charged for the syrup or soy. So the barista was actually correct in not wanting to ring you up for a drink you weren't getting and then adding all of the ingredients for free. Plus a Caramel Macchiato is actually made differently than a vanilla latte so to order it the way you did, you would not have gotten a true CM.

You also mentioned that you ordered an Caramel Macchiato w/xtra caramel...so i'm sure you weren't charged for the xtra caramel, so you would have save about .40 for the xtra caramel even without a sbux card.

[Gord]

Zorro:

I have no idea why the partners wouldn't ring up the drink as you requested. With what you ordered it isn't even a Caramel Macchiatto anymore so they shouldn't even have thought to argue it (since with what you ordered there would have been more syrup, and the shots before the ice). Granted, I'm pretty sure if they rang it up correctly, the discount would have been negated anyway, since the free vanilla syrup would have been canceled out by the charge for the caramel sauce (which I actually think is more expensive than the vanilla syrup in my area). :)

On a side note, that barista needs a quick coaching conversation from the manager. :)

Bring back carpet? Seriously? Do you know how many spills there are throughout the day? Then do we need to get carpet cleaners and clean the carpets along with all of the tile every day. Seriously? This is a retail coffee shop...not your living room. I'm not trying to be rude here, but gee...carpet?

[Gord]

Zorro:

I have no idea why the partners wouldn't ring up the drink as you requested. With what you ordered it isn't even a Caramel Macchiatto anymore so they shouldn't even have thought to argue it (since with what you ordered there would have been more syrup, and the shots before the ice). Granted, I'm pretty sure if they rang it up correctly, the discount would have been negated anyway, since the free vanilla syrup would have been canceled out by the charge for the caramel sauce (which I actually think is more expensive than the vanilla syrup in my area). :)

On a side note, that barista needs a quick coaching conversation from the manager. :)

[Lattegal]

Stan -
Thanks for your post. The one thing I would add from the partner side is to invest in LABOR! Partners are being asked to do more and more but are not being given any more labor dollars to do it. To me, saying hello, good morning, and have a nice day is not legendary service, but having partners available to really make connections is. We have to set ourselves apart from other competition, and though Starbucks may not think that Mcdonalds, Dunkin Doughnuts, etc are competition as far as the product, they are competiting for the almighty dollar. And if someone can get quick service and a fresh product somewhere else at a less expensive price then they may opt to go to the other place. BUT if the customer service and connections are primo then the customer may think other wise.

This is an issue that I keep seeing on blogs all over the web but is just not being addressed by corporate Starbucks. I think this is a DEFINING issue, along with bringing back bold options and totally focusing on COFFEE with coffee tastings, coffee talk, coffee promotions, coffee college, new COFFEE drinks, etc.

[jh]

NOT Anything about COFFEE or FOOD nothing is more IMPORTANT TO investor than the PROFIT and GROWTH Rate.

Investor will jumping into pumping the stock up as long as they figure out the same store traffic is bottoming and will be increasing so the PROFIT will go up and INTERNATIONAL expansion is working to keep the company growing.

Whatever it takes, I think closing store is good, because Starbucks is making a lot of MONEY 10 Billions a year, but not much profit. WHY?? TOO many shops that are NOT Profitable.

TOO many of workers who complains all the time about their job security...etc. not wanting to make sandwiches etc. Wake up! YOU ARE LUCKY to be working! SO serve your customers like you own the shop!

[optimistic]

Here's the three things that I would change:
1) I would make partner pay competitive and more at the discretion of the SM. I've been around for eight years and partner pay has increased once and that was at the beginning of my tenure. During my time we have dramatically increased the difficulty of the barista job while making their pay less and less competitive. We're no longer getting the best candidates.
2) I would attack this whole "cookie cutter" store concept. I do not belive hat every store should look the same on the inside. Every store has its own personality and as a company we should embrace that. So lets look at it: Over the past year, the company has reduced the number of promotions from 13 annually to eight; nice start. What if we were offered 13 at the store level and SMs were allowed to pick eight (holiday, brewing sale and summer 1 required; so pick five). This would instantly graner more buy-in at the store management level and it would make stores look different. During times when there is no promotiongoing on in the store, baristas could get good at being baristas. Crtazy thought.
3) Budgets and targets always seem to be set too high or too low for almost every store. DMs and RDs seem to recognize this but always say that there is nothing they can do about it. That's rediculous. We should all try to meet goals and challenge ourselves, but when the goals are simply unattainable you can find yourself in a situation where your actions represent CE (consistently exceeds) effort but your performance looks like NI (needs improvement) results to your bosses. I trust my DM and my RD. They should be not only encouraged, but required to monitor and restructure budgets and targets so that all managers have the ability to feel successful.

[DB]

I rarely drink coffee that I did not roast myself so I am an infrequent visitor to SBUX. I have never tried the PPR, but every SBUX coffee I've ever seen has what looks like the same roast profile. This means that a Costa Rican origin is roasted like a Sumatran. I think that that is a travesty. If SBUX really wants to promote the rich variety that is coffee, they can dial back the roast profile on quite a few origins and give consumers a chance to taste the optimum roasts for those coffees. The economics of this may be insurmountable on the SBUX scale, but I find claims that SBUX promotes quality coffee to be somewhat dubious. They seem to favor a particular roast profile and then serve coffee in ways designed to smother any origin flavor that may survive the burning. I've seen many independents who have the same approach. I find it sad that people don't get to enjoy the rich variety of various coffee origins (each of which has its own optimum roasting sweet spot) at the commercial level. Could SBUX make this happen? I think they could do it incrementally, and I think they could challenge some independents who think that the shinier the coffee bean the better the coffee. It would be a seismic shift in the coffee landscape.

[Kitty]

Improve training!

Get new partners into a kind of workshop for a week, just theoretical stuff. No in-store training in the first week. Teach them the service concept, teach them about coffee, how to mark the cups, call the drinks, the recipes and standards, let them practice at the register without real customers involved.

THEN, after all this, when they have the basic knowledge of what they are doing - only then let them go into their stores and get them a decent learning coach for another week.

Costs? Higher, for sure. Impact on the performance? Even higher, I'd say.

The in-store training is atrocious in many stores (I'm not saying it's not excellent in many as well). And the new partners need to be given the TIME to learn. You can't expect them to learn anything if they have to do a regular shift from day one.

I could go on and on about this ...

[barista351]

In reference to the cheap-o who wants free syrup in their caramel macchiato:

Here's why we (the baristas) don't want to do what you are asking: If we do it, then you own us. And guess what? Some days, when customers have been pulling my chain for the better part of an 8 hour shift, I just need to stand my ground. And this is one situation where the book is on my side. No, you can't have free signature drink syrups. And I dare you to go to an indy coffee shop. They sure as heck won't be giving you free stuff.

[SoCalRocks!]

3 things-

stop listening to ideas on mystarbucksidea.com

stop listening to ideas on starbucksgossip.com

stop listening to ideas from blogs, consultants, etc.

we have been on idea overload for months now, trying this, trying that, and nobody seems to be pleased. PPR was specifically requested by a large majority of customers who thought our coffees were too strong. Vivannos were requested on mystarbucksidea.com

We need to just start hiring cutting edge, creative, independent thinkers who create trends, rather than follow the trends. If we don't have ANYone that can come up with smart ideas within, on our own, then really what does that say about us as an organization?

I feel like we're monkeys being taunted with bananas by zoo visitors...and zoo keepers...and zoo activists....and zoo experts...you get my point...at some point the monkey's just go insane...

[YouKnowwhoIam]

DB, you are very very wrong. Each coffee has it's own roasting curve. If you don't try various different coffees from Starbucks, nor do you go into Starbucks very often you will never discover this for yourself. You need a french press as well - not a drip coffee. You can even see the difference of the beans - a lighter roast compared to a darker roast (two different regions).

My personal wish is to have more COFFEE in the store and less fluff. More partners who are interested in coffee, more coffee masters, more sampling and tasting, more engaging coffee passion with the customers and actually converting a frou-frou drink consumer into a real coffee lover.

No matter what Starbucks is going through right now I am still passionate about COFFEE, just as much if not more than before I was a partner.

[Gord]

Lattegal:

Increasing labour won't help at the store level. I used to think the same thing, however generally when there is extra labour partners don't do anything extra. I've been there and have seen it. The focus should be on proper deployment. I know a store that did $47,000 in one week and none of the partners felt overworked due to proper deployment.

optimistic and Kitty:

Both of your points are excellent and I really agree. Some of the points in the transformation agenda hit on these as well, so things may be looking up on these.

[lemonade =)]

First and foremost, I just want to say that all the baristas that work in a company owned Starbucks have been for the most part, take the grunt of the anger and frustration for their "partners" above them. Why is it that you see the same people taking out the trash, cleaning the toilet, wiping up spills, where the SM is no where to be found? On top of this, they have to explain every detail to the guests that their SM's do't even know about. How much do you think they really get paid? and does anyone even know that IN n OUT starts all of its employees at 10.00/.hr with great benefits?

Starbucks needs to get back in the game by doing what it promised. Community, Commitment, Causality.

Getting involved in the community could be excellent free publicity. Putting up a kiosk stand at baseball stands run by Starbucks baristas for 2 or 3 hours during a game can bring in business, not to mention more hours. Consumers need to feel a sense of attachment, that indeed, Starbucks is a "third place" that it claims to be.

Second, commitment to the partners especially at the in-store level should be addressed. It is the work of these low pay baristas that fork up the millions in profits right? Most advancements up the ladder should be hired from within. It is these people who know how the guest service should be done. Standards should be high, those without a passion for their job should be let go.

The Starbucks cause is to establish itself as the premier purveyor of the finest coffee in the world, while maintaining its uncompromising principles. Can everyone see where Starbucks went wrong? The principles are what draws passionate partners, the coffee only second to the experience.

Although there have been many lay offs and terminations, some may have be in the right. Long-term tenured employees seem to take advantage of the system, corrupting the system, their team and ultimately the brand of Starbucks as a whole.

Get back to the basics. Water, proportion, grind, freshness.

Partners, communication, passion, development.

***While I acknowledge that most of the partners are honest, hardworking, and responsible, there are SOME in upper management that spread their animosity, frustration, lack of composure, and unethical professionalism towards their team. In doing so, this lowers team cohesion and motivation which result in inadequate service.

Great post SoCalRocks! You said it perfectly!!!!

[Mark]

1. Put more focus on the partners -- let's face it, since Howard's return, all it's been about making the customer happy. Nothing wrong with that, but the business used to be built on if you make the partners happy, they will make the customers happy, and that was successful. Let's face it. Our partners are not happy. Most notably labor needs to be addressed. Our partners are tired of being asked to do more with no additional labor (ie. Vivanno -- how is this not considered a blended beverage? It's the most time-consuming beverage to date, and it's BLENDED!). Baristas are stretched too thin and morale is down. I remember a few years back when the pace was moderate and there was more of an educational environment in the store. Coffee tastings were taking place. SMs, ASMs, and SSs, had time to train and develop their baristas. Now it's a struggle just to keep our heads above water with all the responsibility. Invest more into training. We're bringing new baristas in and don't have the proper time to spend with them anymore. Our learning coaches are usually coverage and trying to complete their responsibilities. Baristas need time to develop their skills (anywhere from 1-4 months) and are being thrown into the fire too quickly. With all this money being thrown down the toilet, how about INVESTING some at the store level? Every store should have an Assistant Store Manager, period. We secure top talent and give every store the opportunity to have two management figures. Shift Supervisors should be running the floor, end of story, unless they are working on a project or PDP for development purposes. Our Shifts don't make enough money for what they do at this point. Most importantly, when will the partners feel like they're being heard again? Mystarbucksidea.com for partners? Total crock. I'm glad we're listening to the customers, but if you're not listening to the partners and motivating them, it doesn't really matter.
2. Revamp the food offerings. Don't need to explain this one. Scratch it all and start over -- pastries, sandwiches, everything. Hell, go back a year or two. It was better then!
3. Increase pay. Let's strengthen ourselves at the most important level of the company, the baristas. We can't secure good talent when we're barely paying above minimum wage. SMs are stretched so thin they're hiring to fill holes, and not just because they're not taking the time to select wisely. Just over the course of the past two weeks, I've had five, FIVE, prospects turn my job offers down when they heard what they'd be making. You see certain stores full of high school and college kids running around like a bunch of five-year-olds at the local playground and you wonder why? Because anyone with half a brain at this point, unless they're in school or working a second job, isn't investing in Starbucks at the barista level!

I think we really need to start recognizing if we're not given the resources to bring in and properly train top-notch talent at the store level we're never going to get back to where we want to be.

[Salimina]

I have been a Starbucks partner for 5 years and until recently I have told everyone how much I love my job. I have loved being able to plug the best coffee money can buy (justifying the prices), working with great teams of individuals, and meeting the wide array of customers who frequent my store. These days my job is becoming just that ... a job. I don't get paid enough to work at just a job. The pay used to make me financially uncomfortable, but the hours at work were so enjoyable (being able to work in a place that I felt connected to on so many levels) that it was easier to be uncomfortable. Now I find myself wondering if I can make more money working in the same position at a 'job' at Taco Smell.

Here'a what I think Starbucks ought to consider.

1. Brewing coffee every 30 minutes is a great theory. I agree the coffee tastes better closer to the top of it's brewed time. However, when you've got 4 partners on the floor and 2 1/2 of them are directed at satisfying drive thru customers and 1 1/2 people trying to satisfy the cafe, one person is pulling their hair out trying to do everything at once. This person is usually me and I'm sure the customers think I'm nuts while I take their order, start milk, turn off yet another timer (the third place terminator), ring them out, drain coffee, pull shots, replace filters, hit the brew button, finish off their drink, and hand off the drink while smiling and holding a conversation the entire time. It's a lot to do in the amount of time it takes to take an order and make a drink. I usually end up in this situation because I've got 2 customers and the drive thru is 5 cars deep. I can do it, but I look like a crazy person in the mean time. It didn't look like this when we were doing it at hour intervals. Than we could time the brewing cycle to be every 12 minutes. PLEASE LET'S EXTEND THE BREW TIMES!!!

2. Stop buying things we end up throwing away. Although I think the volumetric scoops are a great idea, I wish they were stainless steel. We replace these things 4+ times a year. I watched the large stainles pitchers hit the trash. I've seen blender pitchers go in after being rendered obsolete. It's unnerving how much needless trash there has been in the past five years. Sometimes I wish Starbucks would just lay out the larger initial expense on such things so that we can stop being nickel and dimed over the years. Even the "scooped by" stickers seem silly - they take too much time and when we run out we go to the Pike stickers which look better anyway.

3. Shift the focus back to the basics. My customers might be willing to try the Vivanno and some are willing to buy it, but we're plugging it to every person every time they come within feet of our store. It's a good product, but we've never pushed anything so hard and it's really turning the customers off. In fact, I've noticed pastry sales going up now that we're not offering them a pumpkin loaf at EVERY transaction. We need to be more considerate of these people. We're starting to sound like every other fast food joint.

4. This last point is a big one for me. I really think Starbucks would benefit from becoming aligned with a large national charity OR allowing individual stores and/or districts to becoming aligned with a local charity (and I don't just mean a bean drive, I mean a POS button). If Starbucks gave 10 cents of every latte or Vivanno to Autism Speaks or the March of Dimes or whatever, people would become more interested. If we did it nationally, that would help our image with our detractors. If we could make choices on this locally on a grass roots level, each store's customers would find themselves doing their civic duty when they buy their coffee. It would be one more reason they shouldn't miss their morning treat.

I want to believe in my job again. I want to feel good when I come home. I don't want to feel like I just ran another race against brewing time for no reason. I really do believe that Starbucks has a good product, but I'm tired of feeling sidelined from our mission statement with frou-frou products while we watch 600 stores and 1000 valued partners being forced to re-evaluate their commitment to the corporation.

[Kitty]

Every store should have an Assistant Store Manager, period. [..] Shift Supervisors should be running the floor, end of story, unless they are working on a project or PDP for development purposes.
Posted by: Mark | August 02, 2008 at 02:55 PM

Amen to that. How can a Store Manager take their holiday and relax or - gasp - even make a trip and be out of town for, say, two weeks without an ASM?

It's simply irresponsible to leave a shift supervisor in charge of a whole store and team. I've seen it happen, and I have seen the results. Sure, there are shifts who can do it, but I consider these high potential and on their way to become an ASM in the near future.

[optimistic]

Mark,
Well said!

[espressoblend]

Stop opening new international stores for a period of time and use those designated capital funds to put a Clover machine in all stores so the customer has a choice of more coffee options.

No way! Anyone who knows ANYTHING about international markets knows that, right now, that's where the cash is! Not opening up stores in Berlin, Munich, Geneva, Athens, Moscow, etc. would be a huge opportunity loss! This would be such a disservice to investors everywhere! You need to go where the money is, and right now it's not the US (or Australia, apparently).

Also wrong with this statement is that you want to put top-notch Clovers in *all* US stores? WTF? American-centric, aren't you? The Clover would be a huge waste in Hickville, West Virginia, for instance. Not every store or it's customers would "get" the Clover. A huge capital cost would incur and it would only lead to further losses.

Here's the three things that I would change:
1) I would make partner pay competitive and more at the discretion of the SM. I've been around for eight years and partner pay has increased once and that was at the beginning of my tenure. During my time we have dramatically increased the difficulty of the barista job while making their pay less and less competitive. We're no longer getting the best candidates.
2) I would attack this whole "cookie cutter" store concept. I do not belive hat every store should look the same on the inside. Every store has its own personality and as a company we should embrace that. So lets look at it: Over the past year, the company has reduced the number of promotions from 13 annually to eight; nice start. What if we were offered 13 at the store level and SMs were allowed to pick eight (holiday, brewing sale and summer 1 required; so pick five). This would instantly graner more buy-in at the store management level and it would make stores look different. During times when there is no promotiongoing on in the store, baristas could get good at being baristas. Crtazy thought.

Oh wow! Let me get this straight here: you want more competitive pay? I think $8.00 to $12.00 an hour is pretty competitive in fast food. Stop complaining about your pay. If you want more, refine your abilities and go find a better paying field. Your job might be stressful, yes, what with all the multitasking, but at the end of the day, you're just serving up food and drink. People at McDonalds have it harder than you do.

As for the cookie cutter comment, no way. Remember, SBUX is in cost-cutting/ savings mode. Ordering 100 chairs from the same company in the same style is cheaper than 100 chairs in 10 styles. It's why Costco is so popular...

Finally:

Here's why we (the baristas) don't want to do what you are asking: If we do it, then you own us. And guess what? Some days, when customers have been pulling my chain for the better part of an 8 hour shift, I just need to stand my ground. And this is one situation where the book is on my side. No, you can't have free signature drink syrups. And I dare you to go to an indy coffee shop. They sure as heck won't be giving you free stuff.

Posted by: barista351 | August 02, 2008 at 02:00 PM

Please remember that you, as the worker, are there to serve the customer. It's not your choice. You're actually being PAID to serve the customer. You also have this great policy called Just Say Yes. It's a pretty well-known policy, both to customers and employees. You may have heard about it. It says that if the customer asks for something within reason, you're obligated to Just Say Yes. I can promise you, too, that if I complain to your manager he or she will always take the paying customer's side. Every time. Especially now, where every dollar the customer spends in a SBUX store is cherished like it was a gift from god. Please remember your place. Thanks!

[SM]

Just because vivanno isn't considered 'blended' in ALS does NOT mean we do not get labor for it. Each drink we make and ring in each task we have to do is given a time allotment in ALS. We DO earn more hours for a VIVANNO drink than we would for a latte or brewed coffee, the only diffence is that it is different labor than our old blended. If SM's read vivanno materials correctly, they were allowed to buffer labor for the 4 for weeks of vivanno untill ALS caught up to the sales trends.

NOTHING is wrong with the amount of labor we are alotted!! My partners work hard, get everything done, but still have plenty of time to chat with each other and customers.

[it's brunt not grunt]

I think DB is correct about the roasts being the same on all beans. Except for Espresso, Italian, French, and Breakfast Blend, they are all roasted the same--the Starbucks Roast.

[optimistic]

espressoblend,
I'm not remotely complaining about my pay. I'm a store manager who's making a decent living. What I was saying is that in my market, barista pay has been stagnant at $7.00/hour since 2001. That was fine then; The rest of the cutomer service industry was at $5.15 and we could get the best candidates. That was part of what made us different and great.
Try to know what you're talking about.

[it's brunt not grunt]

oh and I think Pike Place Roast too.

Does every one complaining about labor allowance and pay rate realized that most stores run on 19-26% labor?!?!?!

That means for every dollar a store makes, 19-26 cents of it is going to paying the employees. This doesn't include the costs of insurance, 401k, vacation time, partner coffee mark outs ect. And employee expenses are only part of the equastion, then you have we have to account for rent, utlities, product cost of goods ect. To put this in perspective, many other food service chains are alloted 15% or less. When I was managing a store of a large sandwich chain, I was only allowed 14% labor. That ment lots and lots of hours in the week were spent by employees alone on the floor.

I agree that our great baristas should be making more than minimum wage. But we need to keep things in perspective and remember that we DO have to stay profitable. Its' striking a balance. If you want more pay or hours, it's going to come only as a result of a cut to something else or a price increase.

[optimistic]

espressoblend,
I'm not remotely complaining about my pay. I'm a store manager who makes a decent living.
I'm complaining about what I have to pay my baristas. Starting pay in my market is $7.00/hour, it has been since 2002. That was fine then as the rest of the food service industry was at $5.15/hour and Starbucks jobs were sought after because of our pay. The rest of the world has changed and we have not. I used to compete with restaurants for great employees and now I find myself competing with McDonalds and others.
And as far as your cookie cutter rebuttal; That's not even in the neighborhood of what I was talking about. Read the post. Refine your skills!

[Mr. Woodson]

Create a 3rd place for the customer...In my eyes as a partner that is the most important thing we can do. At the store I work at no one exemplifies that more than the lovely Miss Kitty...AKA Kim. Day in and Day out her genuine demeanor and care and concern for the customers and partners shines through brightly. She is everything a Starbucks partner should be. She is friendly, gregarious, efficient, standardized, willing to accept feedback, a kind soul that doesnt let anyone's bad attitude get the best of her. This company needs Miss Kitty's in every store. I am sure there are quite a few Miss Kitty's across the country...But in order to get things back to a better place for starbucks, we need everyone to be a Miss Kitty. I do my best to be a Miss Kitty and I'm a male. :-) I think I'll take the nickname Kim calls me and run with it...as the male version of what she is: Mr Woodson. Miss Kitty/Kim...if you are reading this...Keep doing what you do...Your outstanding customer service is inspiring and your heart is one of a kind...Sincerely Mr. Woodson in Kittery, Maine.